Global Courant 2023-04-19 07:13:30
OTTAWA –
Canada’s federal officials will have to be on the picket line for four hours every day, even as their union has tried to negotiate permanent work-from-home arrangements with the government.
The Public Service Alliance of Canada announced that some 155,000 workers will strike after talks with the government failed to reach an agreement before the Tuesday night deadline.
The union said the strike action would begin at 12:01 a.m. EDT on Wednesday.
Chris Aylward, the union’s national president, said negotiating teams will remain at the table during the strike.
Many of those workers only work in the office two or three days a week, but union president Chris Aylward says they must scan a barcode at a picket location every day to receive strike money.
For members who choose not to show up, there will be consequences, he said in an interview.
“If you’re not on a picket, you’re not on a strike, and there are provisions in the constitution for discipline and members can have their membership suspended,” Aylward said.
He said there will be exceptions to the rules for those who have mobility issues or disabilities or have discussed their circumstances with the union.
They will be given other administrative tasks to complete instead of pickets.
The president of the Ontario Federation of Labor says there are many ways employees can contribute to their colleagues’ efforts from the comfort of their living rooms, such as joining labor committees and raising awareness on social media.
“There may be a team of people communicating with members through newsletters, texts or phone calls,” says Patty Coates.
“There are a lot of different things that can happen behind the scenes. It’s not just the employees walking the picket line.”
Coates, who said she has staged several strikes, said the union supports the possible jobs action and noted that the cost of living continues to rise.
Wages were at the forefront of the union’s negotiations with the government, although other issues, such as more anti-racism training for the government and an entrenchment of the hybrid workplace, were also on the table.
Jennifer Carr, the president of the Professional Institute of the Public Service of Canada, said that while her union has chosen the arbitration route, it has hosted webinars to educate its members on how to support the would-be strikers.
“We show that solidarity through those actions,” she said.
While workers are at home, unions can’t monitor everything members do, such as checking work-related emails or phone calls.
Carr acknowledged that each union takes its own approach, but she said if members of her union went on strike, she would ask them to abide by collective bargaining rules around striking and not monitor work-related channels.
This report from The Canadian Press was first published on April 18, 2023.
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This story was produced with the financial support of the Meta and Canadian Press News Fellowship.
